[2022] Mar. 23, 2022 - Expedition: Oshur (PS4 Update)

All PS4 servers will be offline for the following update, Mar. 23, at 8:00am PT (4:00pm CET), downtime is expected to last up to three hours. -- Welcome to the Isles of Oshur A new, massive-scale continent makes its way to PlanetSide 2 for the first time since 2014. The tropical isles of Oshur are reminiscent of a time before the Auraxian war, where research and exploration were the most valued pursuits, and the factions weren't fully divided. Something for Everyone Oshur was designed with an emphasis on logistics and diversity of gameplay. The towering Trident Relays necessitate air support and quick responses, the lattice has deliberate and strategic cutoffs for squad and platoon leaders to pursue, the beachheads and mid-field bases carve a space for meaningful vehicle battles; and the hand-crafted bases create unique and learnable gameplay spaces for hardened infantry veterans. With this new island battleground, there is something to enjoy no matter your style of gameplay. Exodus Flotilla The expedition to Oshur took place aboard the new Exodus-class Fleet Carriers. Unlike traditional maps, there are no Warpgates on Oshur, and this flotilla of heavily armed fleet carriers will become your new base of operations. Enemy vehicles that stray too close will be shot out of the sky by the shipboard Particle Projection Cannon. Water Mechanics As a part of a massive undertaking, we've completely changed how water works in PlanetSide 2. Every vehicle, infantry, and projectile interaction has been re-engineered to accommodate these new mechanics.

• Wheeled Vehicles putter along the surface.
• Hover vehicles float above the water.
• Air vehicles cruise beneath the waves like submarines.
• Infantry and treaded vehicles prowl the ocean floor.
• Projectiles that enter the water are hit with heavy drag.

Indar, Amerish, Hossin, and Esamir will all be retrofitted with these new water mechanics at a later date (so don't dip your toes into that frozen river just yet.) Underwater Weapons Most traditional weapons won't fire while submerged, but special equipment has been added to ease the transition. Three new underwater rifles and one underwater pistol are now available to access by various means.

• UBR-100 Frogman - Unlocked by completing the first tier of the Conquest Oshur directive.
• UBR-150 Sea Lion - Unlocked with Certs or DBC.
• UBR-300 Swordfish - Unlocked by completing Chapter 02 of the Distant Shores campaign.
• UBP-1 Starfish - Unlocked by completing the Distant Shores campaign.

New Facilities Interlink Outpost Constructed as early communication hubs for research on the islands and out at sea, the Interlinks are single-point infantry-capture bases with a close-quarters arena and multiple entrances for attackers. Controlling an Interlink Outpost counts toward Empire Strength on the continent. Trident Relay These massive spires jutting from the water's surface are only enterable from their airpads located high above. Three symmetrical entrance-ways provide an airport-style atmosphere to fight through. Controlling a Trident Relay counts toward Empire Strength on the continent, and allows for lattice cutoffs deep into enemy territory. Distant Shores, Chapter 02 Nascent Expeditions has finally cleared the path toward Oshur, and the Empires are maneuvering to gain a foothold. The last chapter of the Distant Shores campaign ends June 30. New Directives Oshur Collections - A new "Collections" tab can be found in the Directives page. Our first Collections directive asks you to recover the lost dog tags of those who died during the evacuation of Oshur. Conquest - Oshur - In the "Strategic" tab, a new directive line dedicated to the war for Oshur has been added. Unlock the new UBR-100 Frogman by completing the first tier, and the (very special) Paradise Camo at Master tier, reserved for only the most hardened veterans. Oshur Auto-Unlock Dates To celebrate the launch of Oshur, we'll be auto-unlocking the continent of Oshur from Wednesday, Mar. 23 through Sunday, Mar 27. After that, Oshur will enter the normal continent rotation. General Changes Friendly Fire

• Friendly fire damage is now reduced by 50% at all times against non-squad/non-platoon members.
• Grief from friendly fire now decays 50% faster at all times.

Vehicle/Infantry Balance M14 Banshee (TR Mosquito)

• Blast damage outer radius from 2m to 1.5m.

Dev Note: Reducing this weapon's blast damage is intended to increase exposure time and necessary accuracy to secure easy kills with this weapon. ANT

• C-Barrier armor increase from 20% to 30%.
• Transport Cloak has been removed, and the certs refunded.

M12 Kobalt (ANT/Sunderer/Harasser/Flash/MBT)

• Max damage from 200 to 167
• Min damage from 154 to 143
• Magazine size from 100 to 60.
• MBT/Flash/Harasser ammo capacity from 500 to 600.
• Sunderer/ANT ammo capacity from 750 to 600.
• Ammo restock per tick standardized at 120, this is a buff for all platforms.
• Magazine size skill line now increases magazine by 5 per rank, instead of 13.
• Ammo capacity cert line now provides one magazine worth of ammo per rank, instead of the previous 150.

Dev Note: These changes reduce the damage output and overall uptime of the weapon across all platforms. Lodestar Prototype

• Nanite cost from 500 to 450.
• When deployed, the Lodestar now generates a protective shield of up to 2500 health.

Dev Note: The added health while deployed, and the lowered nanite cost should make this vehicle a bit more worthwhile as a deployable spawn option. Wasp Prototype

• Cortium cost from 400 to 300.
• Nanite cost from 350 to 250.

Dev Note: This cost reduction puts the Wasp on par with the normal Valkyrie to increase its accessibility a bit. NSX Amaterasu

• Projectile now despawns after 15 meters.

Dev Note: This is an experimental change meant to make the tradeoffs between the standard knife and Amaterasu more even. Misc. Changes, Fixes, and Additions

• Fixed a number of out of memory issues that could cause the game to crash.
• All vehicles now have a small dot reticle while in third person.
• Sunderers, Deliverers, and Lodestars can no longer be deployed in the Warpgate regions.
• Prototype vehicles now count toward Heavy Assault's Air Deterrence Directive.
• "Treasured" MSW-R now has charge handle on the correct side of the weapon.
• Fixed an issue with Sunderer Ambulance cosmetics showing low LoD models at short distance.
• Ammo Siphon ability for TR MAX now works with the M3 Pounder HEG.
• You can no longer earn Mining Drill mission credit from enemies or while dead.
• Fixed a skinning issue with the TR Light Assault Composite Helmet.